VW Touareg V6 TDI price: $42,800 originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 18 Nov 2008 08:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

BMW learns buyers want to save money, not planet originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 27 Oct 2008 09:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Autoline on Autoblog with John McElroy

Autoline on Autoblog with John McElroy originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 02 Oct 2008 16:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Are fuel prices hurting acceptance of modern diesels? originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 23 Sep 2008 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

BMW 520d beats Prius in gas mileage originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 23 Mar 2008 12:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

GM bets $69 million on diesel plant in Ohio originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 05 Feb 2008 16:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

In the fuel economy and future tech debate, the hybrid vs. diesel vs. hydrogen fuel cells vs. smaller cars and smaller engines always provokes a fair bit of discussion among Autoblog commentators. At this point, no one yet knows what's going to win since nobody knows how the volatile mix of products, timelines, prices, regulations, legislation, state standards, and gas prices will ultimately pan out. Bob Lutz's prediction is that diesels, at least as far as the US is concerned, won't be much of a factor.

His reasoning is simple: "I think customers are going to say, 'Wait a minute. At equal fuel prices I'm paying $4,000 more for this." Unlike many countries in Europe, the US offers no incentive for people to buy diesels. In the States the price of a diesel vehicle is often more than $1,000 higher than that of a gasoline-engined car, and diesel fuel is just as expensive as gas (throughout California and other states, it's slightly more expensive than premium unleaded). In that case, Lutz's opinion is that just about all the customer will glean from an oilburner is a higher car payment.

Lutz sees diesel uptake in the US hovering at about eight-percent. The technology he sees as winning the day: ethanol. It's clean, it's easy to integrate into the refueling infrastructure, and it "doesn't require a change in consumer behavior." (Except for the people in emerging markets who've seen the price of corn skyrocket.) For another take on the fuel economy battle, according to Kelly Blue Book, 40-percent of US new car shoppers think hybrids are the future, with just 17-percent citing flex-fuel.

[Source: The Car Connection]

The US according to Lutz: ethanol, yes, diesels, not so much originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 28 Jan 2008 19:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Diesel vehicles have nearly a 50-percent market share in Europe, thanks to tax incentives and diesel-friendly legislation across the EU. Diesels are so passé there that you can buy a BMW 730d and no one will think it odd that your luxury car burns oil. Pull up in a diesel 7-Series in America and people would leer at you like you've alighted from an amphibious vehicle reeking of saltwater and dead trout.

But now, thanks to the oft-reported combo of newly-raised CAFE standards, not-so-newly-raised gas prices, and the 50-state diesel engine, GM, Ford, and Chrysler are about to dip more than a hesitant toe into the diesel game. Chrysler offers a diesel in the Grand Cherokee, but soon all three automakers will offer diesels in their best-selling lineups of light trucks -- the Dodge Ram 1500 is expected to offer a 50-state diesel after 2009. Light trucks are being used to lead the charge since those buyers stand to gain the most with the least amount of (perceived) sacrifice.

Diesels currently have 3.2-percent of the American market. Some estimates put them at 15-percent by 2015. That's a huge leap, and diesel still has plenty of hurdles. Diesels will come with a cost premium over gasoline-engined cars. That should be easy enough to conquer -- incentives and some quick cost and longevity calculations should convince people of the benefit. The real hurdle is the nagging issue of perception. The plan will probably be to attack that with a price that makes the proposition unbeatable. Said Chrysler's director of environmental affairs, "If it's priced right, we can sell diesel here. Diesel can give you an immediate poke in fuel economy -- 20 to 40 percent. Not many technologies can deliver that today."

[Source: Detroit News]

Thanks to CAFE, Detroit three (finally) embrace diesels originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 02 Jan 2008 08:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

BusinessWeek gets a shoutout from us for saying what's gotta be said (as many of our readers have) -- Americans need to get over their perception of diesels as being stinky, loud slowpokes already. Truly. Part of the problem is the fact that until we get cleaner UltraLow Sulfur fuel starting in October, the stinky part may have some truth to it; however, there's something to be said for the fact that diesel is 30-percent more efficient than gasoline and current oil burners perform near to or at the level of their gasoline counterparts.

DaimlerChrysler is slowly climbing on board with its Jeep Liberty and Mercedes E-class diesel models, but we're all about the day when we, like Europe, can buy almost any car as a diesel or a gasoline model. Onwards to October!

[Source: BusinessWeek]

Let's start importing some diesels already! originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 27 Apr 2006 16:49:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Spy Shots: 2007 Ford Super Duty originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 05 Apr 2006 12:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.